Boneless Jerk Pork with Glazed Sweet Potatoes, by Beverly Hicks Burch

Although we do eat a lot of chicken, we also enjoy the “other white meat”. That would be good lean pork loin or tenderloin. A study completed a few years ago revealed lean pork was a good food for dieters because it leaves a person feeling satisfied longer (thus lowering the urge to snack), is lower in fat and high in protein.

One of our favorite ways to cook pork loin is to grill it…of course, when you live with a grillmaster that has to be the way.

Looking for something a little different today, we opted to go ethnic again and try a jerk pork recipe. (I keep telling Tall & Handsome how much I love jerk and that some of the best barbeque I ever had was on St. Thomas, VI…different, but fabulous!) So, this evening’s fare is Boneless Jerk Pork with Glazed Sweet Potatoes, a recipe adapted from a Weber cookbook. (The recipe calls for tenderloin but we had a loin roast and used it.)

Jerk Pork Tenderloin

2 – 1 pound pork tenderloins

For the paste:

8 green onions

2 tablespoons vegetable oil (we used canola oil)

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh ginger

2 tablespoon fresh lime juice

2 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

½ jalapeno pepper, seeded and deveined (You can you a hotter pepper if you want more heat)

1 tablespoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon dried thyme

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar.

1. Place paste ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth, for about 2 minutes.

2. Cover tenderloin with the paste. (We found placing the tenderloin in a zip lock bag and pouring the paste in worked the best.)

3. Marinate and refrigerate 2 to 4 hours. Before grilling allow to stand at room temperature for 20 minutes.

4. Grill over direct medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes (for tenderloin) or 45 to 50 minutes for a pork loin roast and pork is slightly pink inside (internal temp should be about 180°.)

Glazed Sweet Potatoes

2 large sweet potatoes (1 pound each)

Grated zest of 2 limes

¼ cup lime juice

¼ cup vegetable oil

2 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

½ teaspoon kosher sale

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

1. In a small bowl mix the ingredients together for the glaze.

2. Peel and wash the sweet potatoes. Cut into ½ inch slices.

3. Brush both sides on potatoes with glaze.

4. Grill on direct medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, turning and basting with the glaze every 5 minutes. Also, baste the tenderloin when you baste the potatoes.